Getting Castaneda

1. Castaneda's journey: From anthropology student to sorcerer's apprentice

'I had begun to lose the certainty, which all of us have, that the reality of everyday life is something we can take for granted.'

A chance encounter with don Juan Matus, a Yaqui shaman, in 1960 led Carlos Castaneda on an extraordinary journey from anthropology student to sorcerer's apprentice. Over 13 years, Castaneda's worldview was systematically dismantled and reconstructed as he learned the ways of ancient Mexican sorcery.

The apprenticeship involved:

• Use of psychotropic plants to break down perceptual barriers
• Learning to "see" energy directly
• Mastering the art of dreaming
• Developing the "warrior's way" of living

Castaneda's experiences challenged the boundaries of reality and perception, leading to a series of bestselling books that captivated readers worldwide and sparked controversy in academic circles.

2. The two-fold nature of human awareness: First and second attention

'The world doesn't yield to us directly, the description of the world stands in between. So, properly speaking, we are always one step removed and our experience of the world is always a recollection of the experience. We are perennially recollecting the instant that has just happened, just passed. We recollect, recollect, recollect.'

First attention is our everyday awareness, focused on the agreed-upon reality we share with others. It's maintained through internal dialogue and social conditioning. Second attention is a vast realm of awareness usually inaccessible to us, containing forgotten memories, other worlds, and expanded perceptions.

The challenge for a sorcerer is to:

1. Become aware of the second attention
2. Learn to move between the two types of awareness at will
3. Integrate both attentions to achieve the totality of oneself

This dual nature of awareness explains many paranormal phenomena and forms the basis for much of the sorcerer's practices.

3. The assemblage point: Key to perception and reality

'Perception occurs when the energy fields in that small group immediately surrounding the point of brilliance extend their light to illuminate identical energy fields outside the ball. Since the only energy fields perceivable are those lit by the point of brilliance, that point is named "the point where perception is assembled" or simply "the assemblage point".'

The assemblage point is a spot of intense brilliance on the surface of our luminous energy cocoon. It selects and aligns specific energy fields, determining what we perceive as reality. Moving the assemblage point allows for radically different perceptions and experiences of reality.

Key points about the assemblage point:

• Its position is typically fixed by habit and social conditioning
• Psychotropic plants, illness, or deliberate practices can shift it
• Sorcerers learn to move it at will, accessing different worlds and states of being
• The goal is to make the assemblage point fluid while maintaining coherence

Understanding and manipulating the assemblage point is central to the sorcerer's ability to perceive and interact with non-ordinary reality.

4. Dreaming: A gateway to other worlds and expanded consciousness

'Dreams are, if not a door, a hatch into other worlds ... dreams are a two-way street'

Dreaming, in the sorcerer's context, is a set of practices for deliberately entering and exploring other realms of awareness. It involves developing control over one's dreams and using them as a vehicle for perception and action in non-ordinary reality.

The stages of dreaming include:

1. Becoming aware of falling asleep
2. Learning to maintain dream images
3. Moving freely in the dream world
4. Using dreams to interact with other entities and realms

Mastery of dreaming allows sorcerers to:

• Access forgotten knowledge
• Interact with inorganic beings
• Travel to other worlds
• Develop the "energy body" or double

Dreaming is considered one of the most powerful and dangerous practices in sorcery, requiring discipline, courage, and impeccability.

5. The art of stalking: Managing behavior to break habitual perception

'The warrior's way, or the art of stalking, is to learn to break the routines of our lives, to stop the internal dialogue, to build a new inventory of behavior.'

Stalking is the practice of systematically altering one's behavior to break free from habitual patterns of thought and perception. It's a complementary practice to dreaming, focused on the waking world.

Key aspects of stalking include:

• Erasing personal history
• Losing self-importance
• Assuming responsibility for one's actions
• Becoming inaccessible to others' manipulations
• Using death as an advisor

The goal of stalking is to free up energy typically bound in maintaining our self-image and social roles, making that energy available for expanding awareness and perception.

6. The predatory universe: Inorganic beings and the flyer

'We have a predator that came from the depths of the cosmos and took over the rule of our lives. Human beings are its prisoners. The predator is our lord and master.'

The universe is predatory in nature, filled with aware entities seeking to consume each other's awareness. Two significant predatory forces in Castaneda's cosmology are:

1. Inorganic beings:

   • Inhabit a realm parallel to ours
   • Seek to entrap human awareness
   • Can be allies or dangerous adversaries

2. The flyer:

   • An unseen predator that feeds on human awareness
   • Installed its mind over ours, promoting self-importance and fear
   • Can be countered through inner silence and impeccability

Understanding these predatory forces is crucial for navigating the dangers of expanded awareness and maintaining one's integrity as a sorcerer.

7. The warrior's way: Impeccability, intent, and freedom from self-importance

'The basic difference between an ordinary man and a warrior is that a warrior takes everything as a challenge, while an ordinary man takes everything as a blessing or a curse.'

The warrior's way is a path of discipline, awareness, and impeccability that allows one to navigate the challenges of sorcery and everyday life. It involves:

• Cultivating impeccability in thought and action
• Developing personal power through disciplined practices
• Eliminating self-importance and self-pity
• Living with the awareness of death as an advisor
• Cultivating detachment and controlled folly

By following the warrior's way, one develops the strength and flexibility to face the challenges of expanded awareness and the predatory nature of the universe.

8. Ancient Mexican sorcery: A lost tradition rediscovered

'The sorcerers of ancient Mexico were the first to see the energy filaments that make up the universe.'

Ancient Mexican sorcery, according to Castaneda, is a sophisticated system of knowledge and practices developed over thousands of years. This tradition:

• Predates modern civilizations by millennia
• Was nearly wiped out by conquest and colonization
• Survived in secret lineages, evolving into the "new seers" tradition

Key aspects of this tradition include:

• Direct perception of energy
• Manipulation of awareness through dreaming and stalking
• Understanding of the assemblage point and its movement
• Techniques for energy conservation and accumulation

The rediscovery and dissemination of this ancient knowledge form the core of Castaneda's work and its significance.

9. The power of silence: Key to accessing other realms of awareness

'Inner silence is the key to everything sorcerers do.'

Inner silence is the cessation of internal dialogue, the constant mental chatter that maintains our ordinary perception of the world. Achieving inner silence is crucial for:

• Moving the assemblage point
• Accessing the second attention
• Perceiving energy directly
• Protecting oneself from predatory forces

Techniques for developing inner silence include:

• Not-doing exercises
• Erasing personal history
• Recapitulation
• Controlled folly

Mastery of inner silence is considered one of the most challenging and rewarding aspects of the sorcerer's path.

10. The recapitulation: Recovering energy and memory

'The recapitulation consists of recollecting one's life down to the most insignificant detail.'

The recapitulation is a systematic review of one's entire life, aimed at:

• Recovering energy lost in past interactions
• Freeing oneself from emotional entanglements
• Accessing forgotten memories and knowledge
• Preparing for the final journey of awareness

The process involves:

1. Making a detailed list of all people one has interacted with
2. Systematically reliving each interaction in vivid detail
3. Using specific breathing techniques to "inhale" one's own energy and "exhale" foreign energy

The recapitulation is considered essential for freeing up the energy needed for advanced sorcery practices and expanding awareness.

11. The sorcerer's ultimate goal: Burning with the fire from within

'The goal of sorcerers is to reach a state of total awareness in order to experience all the possibilities of perception available to man. This state of awareness even implies an alternative way of dying.'

The ultimate goal of the sorcerer's path is to achieve a state of total awareness, transcending ordinary human limitations. This involves:

• Fully developing the energy body or double
• Mastering the movement of the assemblage point
• Integrating the first and second attentions
• Achieving freedom from the human form

The final act of a sorcerer's life is "burning with the fire from within," a process where:

• The entire energy body is ignited by awareness
• The sorcerer enters the third attention, a realm of pure energy and consciousness
• Death is transcended, and a new form of existence begins

This ultimate transformation represents the full realization of human potential and the completion of the sorcerer's journey.

Last updated: November 19, 2024